Steven Robb, president of LaSalle Solutions, a Rosemont, Ill.-based solution provider, said this year he's interested in learning what's next for Cisco and its partners in the services market, particularly since services like lifecycle and information management have become such a significant part of LaSalle's business.

Specifically, Robb said he'd be curious to hear any news related to the open APIs Cisco offers for its Smart Services, which lets partners create their own apps and workflow integration software to use alongside Cisco's.

"I see Cisco being one of the market leaders in the sharing of information, and the recognition of that information is as important, if not more so, than speeds and feeds," Robb said.